Epson EcoTank ET-2871

With the Epson EcoTank ET-2871 I save a lot on my consumable costs thanks to the ink tanks and I print documents sharply. I do not automatically print double-sided with this printer.

Low running costs This printer does not use cartridges, but has an ink tank that I fill with ink from bottles. Filling the ink tanks is very easy. I place an ink bottle on the attachment and the ink automatically flows into the tank. I was afraid of stains on my desk, but ink automatically stops flowing from the bottle when the tank is full. The biggest advantage of these ink tanks is that they are much cheaper than cartridges. With one set of ink bottles you can print approximately 4,500 pages in black and white and 7,500 in color. I print about 300 pages and after this I see no difference in the ink level. This makes the printer economical to use if you print a lot.

Small size and easy connection What I like about the printer is that it is compact and light. The light weight of the printer makes it easy to unpack. Due to its compact size, the printer fits easily on my desk next to my laptop and monitor. Connecting the printer to my WiFi network also goes smoothly. I connect my smartphone directly to the printer's own WiFi network. I scan a QR code on the printer's screen and am then immediately connected. My laptop does not have a USB input to which I connect the printer, but this is not a problem. I print via Apple AirPrint and the Epson Smart Panel app. I can copy or scan at the touch of a button via the LCD screen. The printer does not automatically print on both sides, so I only print single-sided documents.

High print quality The printer is on the slow side. Printing a 10-page color document takes about 2 minutes. A full-page image is ready after a minute. I often print small documents myself, so I don't mind waiting a while. If you often print reports with many pages, I would choose a faster printer. The quality of text and color documents is good. The printer has a high print resolution of 5,760 by 1,440 dpi. This also allows me to print images sharply. With the standard print settings, I think the colors look a bit dull on the paper. After I choose the high print quality, I do get vibrant colors.

Do yourself a favor, buy a different printer than this one. It is very unclear how to install the printer. For example, it indicates that there is no USB connection for certain functions, while there is indeed one. Establishing a WiFi connection is terribly difficult. And the paper jams very quickly.

The primary thing is that the printer can make good quality prints at a reasonable speed, that aspect is certainly successful. This printer was the successor to my Brother printer (DPC-J562DW), which unfortunately broke down. During installation I really longed for how it used to be with that old printer! I do not recommend people who are not so handy with the digital world to choose this printer. Installation on my desktop was fairly easy after downloading an app, the manual hardly mentions anything about this. I have fast wifi in my house thanks to TP-Link, but the command to print was slow. A USB cable did wonders! I had read that you had to load the paper at the back, I assumed a cassette, but you have to insert the paper at the top of the back, with an A4 more than half protrudes above the printer. Not pretty, but you can live with it.... I also knew about the small screen in advance, but that it was so small, you actually need a magnifying glass. What a difference with my former Brother, is that still necessary in 2024? But the most important thing is it works!